Kate’s policy background includes work on Senate budget resolutions and appropriations requests and regular interaction with the Senate committees on Energy and Natural Resources, Homeland Security and Government Affairs, Budget, Commerce, Environment, and Public Works as well as with the Senate leadership. She also interfaced with the House committees on Financial Services, Science, and Energy and Commerce. On the agency side, her work has involved collaboration with the State Department, USAID, the Treasury Department, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DOE), the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Federal Reserve, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (BCFP), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK.

*Kate is not a member of the legal practice.

Previous Work

Immediately prior to working at Arent Fox, Kate was the Head of Policy for the Center for Financial Services Innovation (CFSI), a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving consumer financial health. At CFSI Kate led federal and state policy strategy on both legislation and regulation impacting consumers and innovative fintech companies. This work included focus on supporting CFSI’s technology innovation incubator, the Financial Solutions Lab. Kate also assessed policy options and analyzed issues for a wide range of clients, including leading technology firms, major credit card companies, NGOs, global banks, and community banks.

Kate has a strong record of service on Capitol Hill including five years working on Congressional staffs and various political campaigns. She spent four of those years on the Washington staff of Senator Rob Portman. Kate led Senator Portman’s work on environment and conservation issues as well as his subcommittee work on National Parks. Due to the Senator’s role as co-chair of the US Senate International Conservation Caucus and his membership on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, Kate was at the forefront of drafting bipartisan legislation in these areas. She spearheaded the drafting and introduction of a number of environment and conservation bills including the Conservation Reform Act and the reauthorization of Tropical Forest Conservation Act. She provided strategic guidance and negotiated the passage of the Harmful Algal Bloom and Hypoxia Research and Control Amendments Act, Peace Corps commemorative legislation and the Multinational Species Conservation Fund Semipostal Stamp Act into US law. She also assisted in crafting the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act, working closely with Majority Leader Reid and Minority Leader McConnell’s offices toward enactment. Her Senate work included convening bipartisan and interagency events to build consensus on policy solutions.

Kate received an MSc in International Relations from the London School of Economics where she wrote her dissertation on the European Union’s regulatory reaction to the emergence of digital currency technology and its impact on consumer protection.

Kate also received a BSc from the London School of Economics in Economic History where she focused on long-term economic growth and globalization.

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